Saturday, April 27
Minot, N.D.
1:30 P.M. CT
St. Cloud State
at
Minot State
Road Trip to Minot State Up Next for St. Cloud State Baseball
4/26/2024 12:03:00 PM | Baseball
Huskies and Beavers to play three games on Saturday and Sunday
ST. CLOUD, Minn. – St. Cloud State Baseball (25-16, 21-10 NSIC) heads to Minot, N.D. for a three-game set with Minot State (14-27, 11-20 NSIC) this weekend at Corbett Field. The Huskies and Beavers will play a seven-inning / nine-inning doubleheader on Saturday, April 27 beginning at 1:30 p.m. CT, followed by a single nine-inning game on Sunday, April 28 at Noon CT.
FOLLOW THE HUSKIES
Game 1 at Minot State – Saturday, April 27 / 1:30 p.m. CT / Live Stream / Live Stats
Game 2 at Minot State – Saturday, April 27 / 3:30 p.m. CT / Live Stream / Live Stats
Game 3 at Minot State – Sunday, April 28 / 12:00 p.m. CT / Live Stream / Live Stats
POSTSEASON PLAY NEARS
With only eight regular season games remaining, the postseason picture is becoming clearer as the Huskies have themselves poised for a high seed at the NSIC Tournament and are one of two teams included in the first set of NCAA Central Region rankings. In the NSIC the Huskies are currently in third place with a conference record of 21-10 and sit behind Augustana (26-4) and Minnesota State (23-8). Sitting close behind SCSU is Minnesota Crookston (20-10) and Wayne State (19-11) with the Huskies hoping to keep the third seed and maybe catch the Mavericks for the season seed.
The first of three NCAA Division II Baseball Regional Rankings were released on Wednesday, with Augustana and St. Cloud State included from the NSIC. The 38-team NCAA Central Region is made up of teams from the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) and the Great American Conference (GAC). Automatic bids are awarded to the tournament champions from each conference with the final five spots awarded on an at-large basis.
The championship preliminary round competition provides for 16 regional sites that consist of either 3-team or 4-team, double-elimination tournaments. The winners of these regional-round competitions advance to a super-regional round that consist of two teams competing in a best-of-three series. The NCAA DII Baseball Selection Show is scheduled to stream on NCAA.com on Sunday, May 12 at 9 p.m. CT.
SMITH LEADS THE WAY
Junior Sawyer Smith (Somers, Wis.) has led the way offensively for the Huskies this season, leading the team in numerous categories, including batting average (.377), slugging percentage (.685), hits (61), triples (three) and RBI (50). He also ranks in the NSIC's top-10 in many of those categories, ranking second in RBI (50), fourth in doubles (14), seventh in hits (61), seventh in slugging percentage (.685), ninth in triples (three) and ninth in home runs (10).
The Husky junior is on pace to earn All-NSIC recognition this season and potentially All-America honors as he nears the program's top-10 lists for several categories. He is currently seven RBI, six doubles, 17 hits and two home runs away from etching his name in the record book all-time.
BEIER'S HIT STREAK LIVES ON
Senior Drew Beier (Foley, Minn.) enters the series on hit streak of 18 games, the longest of any Husky this season.
After a solid first season as a pitcher and position player in 2023, Beier has had a breakout campaign at the plate with a .371 batting average with four home runs and 30 RBI. He has raised his batting average from .301 to .371 from a season ago while posting career-best marks in nearly every hitting category. In his 18-game hitting streak, Beier is hitting .408 with three home runs and 19 RBI while the Huskies are 13-5.
TRIO OF LEFTIES TAKE THE MOUND
St. Cloud State's trio of lefties – redshirt junior Luke Tupy (New Prague, Minn.), senior Payton VanBeck (Elrosa, Minn.) and senior Jack Habeck (Appleton, Wis.) – have made starts in 29 of SCSU's 41 games this season. The three Huskies currently rank 5-7-9 in innings pitched in the NSIC this season, with Tupy recording 57.1 innings pitched followed by VanBeck at 55.2 IP and Habeck at 53.1 IP.
Tupy has solidified his position as the ace of the Husky rotation having twice been named the NSIC Pitcher of the Week. In 10 starts this season, Tupy is 6-2 on the season with a 2.98 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, .203 opposing batting average and 75 strikeouts. Tupy leads the NSIC in strikeouts (75), while ranking second in opposing batting average (.203), third in wins (six) and fourth in ERA (2.98). Tupy has struck out eight or more batters in six times this season, including in each of his last three starts, while reaching 10 punch outs three times. He's allowed one or fewer runs in five of 10 starts and has gone six or more innings in seven of his last eight outings.
VanBeck has pitched five or more innings in eight of 10 starts this season and has allowed one or fewer earned runs in four starts. He is currently 4-3 on the season with a 3.40 ERA. Habeck has recorded wins in each of his last three starts and enters the weekend with a 6-2 mark and a 5.23 ERA. He went a season-long 7.1 innings with a season-best six strikeouts to earn the victory over Mary on April 14.
COACH DOLAN GETS 600TH SCSU WIN
With a 13-11 win over U-Mary on April 14, head coach Pat Dolan recorded his 600th career win at St. Cloud State. Already the winningest coach in program history, Dolan is now 604-240-1 in 17 seasons at SCSU. Overall, Dolan's 856 career wins at four-year institutions ranks 15th nationally among active Division-II coaches. Adding in his time with Itasca Community College (1995-96), Dolan has 910 career wins. Dolan has led the Huskies to six conference championships and 10 NCAA regional appearances in his 17 seasons at the helm of the Huskies, including a program record 54 wins in 2015.
The Huskies have reached 20 conference wins for the 11th time in program history, all coming under Dolan.
Dolan By the Numbers
MAKING THE MOST OF HIS LAST HURRAH
Graduate Cal James (Buffalo, Minn.) joined the Huskies ahead of the 2023 season after four highly successful seasons at U-Mary, and he's making the most of his final collegiate season. James is currently hitting .352 while leading the Huskies in on-base percentage (.497), home runs (11) and runs scored (47), while ranking second in RBI (39) and slugging percentage (.669). Among NSIC leaders, he ranks fourth in on-base percentage (.497), fifth in home runs (11), sixth in runs scored (47) and ninth in slugging percentage (.669). He hit his 40th career home run against Minnesota Duluth on April 18 and is currently one long ball away from joining SCSU's top-10 list for home run in a single season.
James was especially good against his former team (U-Mary) on April 13-14, as he hit .615 (8-for13) with three home runs and eight RBI. In the series-opening 15-1 win on Saturday, James went 4-for-5 with a double, three RBI and two runs. His four hits were a season-high and marked his 13th multi-hit game of the season. James homered twice in a 12-6 setback on Saturday, marking his second multi-homer game of the season and sixth of his career. He finished the Mary series with a 2-for-3 day at the dish on Sunday while reaching base five times (three HBP) with a home run and two RBI.
James was named NSIC Player of the Week after SCSU's 3-1 trip to Colorado, as he hit .500 (9-for-18) over the four-game stand with four home runs, 11 RBI and eight runs.
For all the latest on St. Cloud State Baseball, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
FOLLOW THE HUSKIES
Game 1 at Minot State – Saturday, April 27 / 1:30 p.m. CT / Live Stream / Live Stats
Game 2 at Minot State – Saturday, April 27 / 3:30 p.m. CT / Live Stream / Live Stats
Game 3 at Minot State – Sunday, April 28 / 12:00 p.m. CT / Live Stream / Live Stats
POSTSEASON PLAY NEARS
With only eight regular season games remaining, the postseason picture is becoming clearer as the Huskies have themselves poised for a high seed at the NSIC Tournament and are one of two teams included in the first set of NCAA Central Region rankings. In the NSIC the Huskies are currently in third place with a conference record of 21-10 and sit behind Augustana (26-4) and Minnesota State (23-8). Sitting close behind SCSU is Minnesota Crookston (20-10) and Wayne State (19-11) with the Huskies hoping to keep the third seed and maybe catch the Mavericks for the season seed.
The first of three NCAA Division II Baseball Regional Rankings were released on Wednesday, with Augustana and St. Cloud State included from the NSIC. The 38-team NCAA Central Region is made up of teams from the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) and the Great American Conference (GAC). Automatic bids are awarded to the tournament champions from each conference with the final five spots awarded on an at-large basis.
The championship preliminary round competition provides for 16 regional sites that consist of either 3-team or 4-team, double-elimination tournaments. The winners of these regional-round competitions advance to a super-regional round that consist of two teams competing in a best-of-three series. The NCAA DII Baseball Selection Show is scheduled to stream on NCAA.com on Sunday, May 12 at 9 p.m. CT.
SMITH LEADS THE WAY
Junior Sawyer Smith (Somers, Wis.) has led the way offensively for the Huskies this season, leading the team in numerous categories, including batting average (.377), slugging percentage (.685), hits (61), triples (three) and RBI (50). He also ranks in the NSIC's top-10 in many of those categories, ranking second in RBI (50), fourth in doubles (14), seventh in hits (61), seventh in slugging percentage (.685), ninth in triples (three) and ninth in home runs (10).
The Husky junior is on pace to earn All-NSIC recognition this season and potentially All-America honors as he nears the program's top-10 lists for several categories. He is currently seven RBI, six doubles, 17 hits and two home runs away from etching his name in the record book all-time.
BEIER'S HIT STREAK LIVES ON
Senior Drew Beier (Foley, Minn.) enters the series on hit streak of 18 games, the longest of any Husky this season.
After a solid first season as a pitcher and position player in 2023, Beier has had a breakout campaign at the plate with a .371 batting average with four home runs and 30 RBI. He has raised his batting average from .301 to .371 from a season ago while posting career-best marks in nearly every hitting category. In his 18-game hitting streak, Beier is hitting .408 with three home runs and 19 RBI while the Huskies are 13-5.
TRIO OF LEFTIES TAKE THE MOUND
St. Cloud State's trio of lefties – redshirt junior Luke Tupy (New Prague, Minn.), senior Payton VanBeck (Elrosa, Minn.) and senior Jack Habeck (Appleton, Wis.) – have made starts in 29 of SCSU's 41 games this season. The three Huskies currently rank 5-7-9 in innings pitched in the NSIC this season, with Tupy recording 57.1 innings pitched followed by VanBeck at 55.2 IP and Habeck at 53.1 IP.
Tupy has solidified his position as the ace of the Husky rotation having twice been named the NSIC Pitcher of the Week. In 10 starts this season, Tupy is 6-2 on the season with a 2.98 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, .203 opposing batting average and 75 strikeouts. Tupy leads the NSIC in strikeouts (75), while ranking second in opposing batting average (.203), third in wins (six) and fourth in ERA (2.98). Tupy has struck out eight or more batters in six times this season, including in each of his last three starts, while reaching 10 punch outs three times. He's allowed one or fewer runs in five of 10 starts and has gone six or more innings in seven of his last eight outings.
VanBeck has pitched five or more innings in eight of 10 starts this season and has allowed one or fewer earned runs in four starts. He is currently 4-3 on the season with a 3.40 ERA. Habeck has recorded wins in each of his last three starts and enters the weekend with a 6-2 mark and a 5.23 ERA. He went a season-long 7.1 innings with a season-best six strikeouts to earn the victory over Mary on April 14.
COACH DOLAN GETS 600TH SCSU WIN
With a 13-11 win over U-Mary on April 14, head coach Pat Dolan recorded his 600th career win at St. Cloud State. Already the winningest coach in program history, Dolan is now 604-240-1 in 17 seasons at SCSU. Overall, Dolan's 856 career wins at four-year institutions ranks 15th nationally among active Division-II coaches. Adding in his time with Itasca Community College (1995-96), Dolan has 910 career wins. Dolan has led the Huskies to six conference championships and 10 NCAA regional appearances in his 17 seasons at the helm of the Huskies, including a program record 54 wins in 2015.
The Huskies have reached 20 conference wins for the 11th time in program history, all coming under Dolan.
Dolan By the Numbers
- Itasca Community College (CC, 1995-96) – 54-17
- Belmont Abbey (NCAA D-II, 1999-01) – 66-81
- Dakota State (NAIA, 2002-07) – 186-106
- St. Cloud State (NCAA D-II, 2008-present) – 604-240-1
- 10 NCAA Regional Appearances
- 4 NSIC Tournament Championships
- 2 NSIC Regular Season Championships
- 21 All-Americans
- 85 All-Conference Honorees
- 2015 NSIC Coach of the Year
MAKING THE MOST OF HIS LAST HURRAH
Graduate Cal James (Buffalo, Minn.) joined the Huskies ahead of the 2023 season after four highly successful seasons at U-Mary, and he's making the most of his final collegiate season. James is currently hitting .352 while leading the Huskies in on-base percentage (.497), home runs (11) and runs scored (47), while ranking second in RBI (39) and slugging percentage (.669). Among NSIC leaders, he ranks fourth in on-base percentage (.497), fifth in home runs (11), sixth in runs scored (47) and ninth in slugging percentage (.669). He hit his 40th career home run against Minnesota Duluth on April 18 and is currently one long ball away from joining SCSU's top-10 list for home run in a single season.
James was especially good against his former team (U-Mary) on April 13-14, as he hit .615 (8-for13) with three home runs and eight RBI. In the series-opening 15-1 win on Saturday, James went 4-for-5 with a double, three RBI and two runs. His four hits were a season-high and marked his 13th multi-hit game of the season. James homered twice in a 12-6 setback on Saturday, marking his second multi-homer game of the season and sixth of his career. He finished the Mary series with a 2-for-3 day at the dish on Sunday while reaching base five times (three HBP) with a home run and two RBI.
James was named NSIC Player of the Week after SCSU's 3-1 trip to Colorado, as he hit .500 (9-for-18) over the four-game stand with four home runs, 11 RBI and eight runs.
For all the latest on St. Cloud State Baseball, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
RHP/IF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
IF/RHP
/ Baseball
LHP
/ BaseballSt Cloud State Baseball Vs Southwest Minnesota State Game 4
Sunday, March 16
St Cloud State Baseball Vs Southwest Minnesota State Game 3
Sunday, March 16
St Cloud State Baseball Vs Southwest Minnesota State Game 2
Thursday, March 13
St Cloud State Baseball Vs Southwest Minnesota State Game 1
Thursday, March 13
